Showing posts with label cookies and bars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cookies and bars. Show all posts
One of the things I really enjoyed in the over 20 years that I lived in the U.K. was going to National Trust properties. Usually (but not always) they consisted of a beautiful historical house and gardens. In most cases there was always a gifts shop, and a tea-room or restaurant attached. A place to relax and enjoy a hot drink and a cake or some other delicious bite after the exhaustion of walking through and exploring everything.
Their tea rooms are exemplary and are well known for their baked goods and sandwiches, soups, etc. Having a treat in the tearoom was always something that I looked forward to on these excursions, and the goods on offer usually had an historical context attached to whichever property we were visiting.
I really miss being able to visit places like this. There is nothing like that where I live now.
Today's recipe comes from the Vyne, a 16th century house in Hampshire. It has a working kitchen garden, the produce of which features on the menu of the restaurant. As well there is a very pretty tea garden.
Traditionally shortbread was not meant to be a really sweet biscuit/cookie. Short and crumbly, with a buttery almost sand-like texture, this bake gets almost all of its sweetness from an abundance of sticky pieces of chopped dates which pepper it in abundance.
These are very rich and go beautifully with a nice hot drink. I adapted the recipe from one I found in a cookbook I own entitled Good Old-Fashioned Teatime Treats as inspired by the National Trust and their properties and edited by Jane Pettigrew. A delightful little book, it contains more than 60 recipes having been gathered from the National Trust Properties which dot the U.K.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE DATE & CINNAMON SHORTBREAD
There is nothing complicated here.
- 3 1/2 cups (350g) sifted plain, all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup + 1 1/2 TBS (250g) butter, softened
- 3/4 cup +2 tsp (175g) soft light brown sugar, packed and put through a sieve
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) stoned dates, chopped small
Make sure you use plain, all-purpose flour, NOT self-raising. There is no leavening to be used in these. That is what gives the characteristically short, crumbly texture to these.
I used Saigon ground cinnamon and salted butter.
I put the sugar through a sieve to remove any lumps from the sugar. As it not being creamed into the dough and is only being stirred into the flour and butter mixture after you have rubbed them together, this is important.
I used medjool date that I cut with a really sharp kitchen knife. I cut each date into quarters and then cut the quarters crosswise into smaller bits.
HOW TO MAKE DATE & CINNAMON SHORTBREAD
The rubbing in of the butter and the cutting of the dates into small pieces is a bit labor intensive, but, aside from the time taken, these not really very difficult things to do. The best things in life often require a bit of patience.
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4. Butter a 7 X 11-inch Swiss roll tin and line with baking paper, leaving some overhang for lifting out. (See note below about pan sizes.)
- Whisk the flour and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Drop in the butter and rub it into the flour mixture using your fingertips until the mixture resembles sand. (Just put some of your favorite music on to listen to and rub away. It will go quickly.)
- Whisk in the brown sugar and the dates, mixing everything together very well. (Make sure your dates are chopped fairly small. A sharp knife makes short work of this.)
- Tip the mixture into the prepared pan and press down firmly and evenly. You can use the bottom of a metal measuring cup or a palate knife to do this.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, until golden brown.
- Leave to cool completely in the tin.
- Lift out and cut into evenly sized fingers with a sharp knife.
- Store in an airtight container. (I used an empty chocolate tin, lined with baking parchment, with more parchment between the layers.)
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS ABOUT THIS RECIPE
Can this be made ahead of time: Certainly. This is the type of bake that keeps very well and can be made well ahead of the time you with to serve it.
Can this be frozen: Absolutely. Cut into the fingers and then place into a tin or other airtight container which you have lined with baking parchment, placing baking parchment between the layers. They will keep for up to 3 months.
What kind of butter is used: I used salted butter. As there is no salt in the recipe, this keeps this bake from tasting too bland.
Can I make the dough in a food processor: You could, up to the point of adding the sugar and the dates. I believe for authenticity and the best texture, however, that you are better off rubbing the butter into the flour mixture by hand.
Must I sieve the sugar: Only if you don't want lumps of brown sugar in your mixture. Sieving it removes that possibility and gives you a much nicer and more uniform result.
WHAT IS THE NATIONAL TRUST
Founded in 1895, the National Trust is a British institution which was begun with the purpose of preserving places of historic and national beauty for the enjoyment of the public. They operate as both a charitable and a membership organization which focuses on the conservation of parks, gardens, wetlands, and historic homes/castles/buildings across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Without their help many of these properties would have been lost forever. You can read more about the National Trust here.
A FEW OTHER SWEET DELIGHTS
ADAPTED FROM NATIONAL TRUST SITES
CORNISH BANANA CAKE - A deliciously moist banana cake layered with a buttery banana filling and iced with a cocoa banana icing. This authentic British Tea Cake originated in Cornwall and can be found in the National Trust Tea Rooms situated on the historic properties of Cornwall.
DOLBURY PUDDING - This steamed pudding recipe comes from the restaurant at Killerton, which is an 18th century house set in the countryside of East Devon, situated in the South West of the UK. It was so named as it is said to resemble Dolbury Hill which rises above the back on the house. What you have here is a beautifully moist and stodgy sponge cake, studded throughout with lots of lovely bits of apple and the fruit from the mincemeat which is used in the batter. This is delicious served warm with lashings of custard.
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Yield: 16 fingers
Date & Cinnamon Shortbread
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 45 Min
Everything a good shortbread biscuit/cookie should be. Not too sweet they are quite rich, with a short, buttery, crumbly texture. The sweetness comes from the dates which pepper these bars in abundance. Perfect to enjoy with a hot cup of tea.
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups (350g) sifted plain, all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup + 1 1/2 TBS (250g) butter, softened
- 3/4 cup +2 tsp (175g) soft light brown sugar, packed and put through a sieve
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) stoned dates, chopped small
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/gas mark 4. Butter a 7 X 11-inch Swiss roll tin and line with baking paper, leaving some overhang for lifting out. (See note below about pan sizes.)
- Whisk the flour and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Drop in the butter and rub it into the flour mixture using your fingertips until the mixture resembles sand.
- Whisk in the brown sugar and the dates, mixing everything together very well.
- Tip the mixture into the prepared pan and press down firmly and evenly. You can use the bottom of a metal measuring cup or a palate knife to do this.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, until golden brown.
- Leave to cool completely in the tin.
- Lift out and cut into evenly sized fingers with a sharp knife.
- Store in an airtight container.
Notes
The equivalent of a 7 x 11-inch pan can be achieved by using:
- One 9-inch round pan
- One 9 x 9-inch square pan
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Peanut Butter Crunch Bars!!! These delicious bars are an easy no bake dessert recipe with a crisp and crunchy base made from crunchy peanut butter, Rice Krispies, corn syrup, peanut butter baking chips. This is topped with a layer of melted semi-sweet chocolate for a dessert bar that tastes very much like one of your favorite candy bars!
This is a recipe I bookmarked from a page called This Is Not Diet Food several weeks ago. I have only just not gotten around to making them as I kept forgetting to pick up the peanut butter baking chips when I went to the shops!
Does anyone else do that? Go into a shop for a specific ingredient and come home with six other things, but having forgotten the initial thing you went in for? Tell me I am not alone in this! Please!
Anyways, I finally did pick up the chips and I finally did make the bars. I did a small batch however, making half the amount in a lined loaf tin rather than a full sized square tin. Good thing too, as these are FAR too dangerous for the peanut butter lover that I am to have hanging around for very long!
They are rich and peanutty, and moreishly crunchy! The semi-sweet chocolate coating on top of the bar helps to keep them from being overly sweet. They tasted very much like one of my favorite chocolate bars, but not quite as sweet! I can see these being a popular addition to the holiday cookie tray!
Very simple and quick to make as well. Other than the set up time you can have these totally put together in about fifteen minutes time. I do believe that they would also freeze well once set up. Simply thaw overnight on the counter to serve.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH BARS
Just a few simple ingredients. I have endeavored as best as I can to provide European substitutions/equivalents for each ingredient.
- 1/2 cup (90g) crunchy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (87.5g) white corn syrup or golden syrup
- 3/4 cup (135g) peanut butter baking chips
- 2 cups (43g) crisp rice cereal
To top:
- 3/4 cup (135g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 TBS butter
Most of the ingredients are quite available in the U.K and Europe, with the one exception being the peanut butter baking chips. Those can be very difficult to find, although you can sometimes find them in ASDA, the Reese's brand. You can also buy them in online American candy/baking supply shops. They can be rather pricey however.
My suggestion is to use white chocolate chips in their place. You could also use milk chocolate chips which would work very well, but your base of the bar would not be as light in color as the base with the peanut butter chips. You will still have a very delicious bar!
HOW TO MAKE PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH BARS
These are really very simple to make. Do keep a watch on the initial mixture however as it can catch very easily and will burn if you are not attentive!
Butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf tin and line with baking paper. Butter the baking paper. Set aside.
Measure the peanut butter, sugar and corn syrup into a saucepan. Heat gently over medium heat, stirring until everything has melted and amalgamated. Do not allow to catch on the bottom.
As soon as the mixture starts to bubble remove from the heat. Str in the peanut butter chips until melted and smooth.
Stir in the rice cereal until it is completely coated and mixed together. Press into the prepared loaf tin.
Heat the semi-sweet chocolate chips along with the butter in the microwave at 30 second increments on high, until melted and smooth.
Pour this melted chocolate over top of the crisp peanut butter rice cereal base and smooth it out.
Leave at room temperature for about 3 hours until set. Cut into bars to serve and store any leftovers in an airtight container.
I put mine in the refrigerator to chill overnight. DON'T do this. It will become as hard as a rock and very difficult to cut.
These were incredibly yummy and not quite as sweet as I expected them to be! The semi-sweet chocolate on top helps to cut down on some of the sweetness. You could also use smooth peanut butter if you wished.
They reminded me of my favorite crispy crunch chocolate bars. They were also somewhat reminiscent of the British rocky road squares without the raisins and cherries. Sort of. They were delicious in any case! Very moreish!
If you are a smaller family or are just wanting smaller batches of treats to enjoy you may also enjoy the following small batch recipes!
SMALL BATCH CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS - Golden brown and studded generously with plenty of semi-sweet chocolate chips. So good with a glass of ice-cold milk, or a cup of tea, a cup of coffee, or whatever beverage that floats your boat! This recipe makes 8 delicious servings.
SMALL BATCH JAM CRUMBLE BARS - These Small Batch Jam Crumble Bars are the bomb! With their plain buttery cake bottoms, sweet jam filling and buttery crumble topping, they never fail to please! This recipe makes 8 bars.
SMALL BATCH MAGIC COOKIE BARS - Everything you love about the full sized recipe but in a much smaller batch. 8 delicious bars layered with 7 layers of graham cracker crumbs, butter, sweetened condensed milk, coconut, toasted pecans and three kinds of chocolate chips! Very yummy!
Yield: 8 squares
Peanut Butter Crunch Bars (small batch)
Cook time: 15 MinInactive time: 3 HourTotal time: 3 H & 15 M
Crisp, crunchy, rich and peanutty. The chocolate topping makes these taste almost like a candy bar.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (90g) crunchy peanut butter
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (87.5g) white corn syrup or golden syrup
- 3/4 cup (135g) peanut butter baking chips
- 2 cups (43g) crisp rice cereal
To top:
- 3/4 cup (135g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 TBS butter
Instructions
- Butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf tin and line with baking paper. Butter the baking paper. Set aside.
- Measure the peanut butter, sugar and corn syrup into a saucepan. Heat gently over medium heat, stirring until everything has melted and amalgamated. Do not allow to catch on the bottom.
- As soon as the mixture starts to bubble remove from the heat. Str in the peanut butter chips until melted and smooth.
- Stir in the rice cereal until it is completely coated and mixed together. Press into the prepared loaf tin.
- Heat the semi-sweet chocolate chips along with the butter in the microwave at 30 second increments on high, until melted and smooth.
- Pour this melted chocolate over top of the crisp peanut butter rice cereal base and smooth it out.
- Leave at room temperature for about 3 hours until set. Cut into bars to serve and store any leftovers in an airtight container
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted without permission. Anyone who does so will be prosecuted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content, and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
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If brown sugar Blondies got together with Almond Croissants and had a baby, this delicious Almond Frangipane Blondie bar would be the result! What you have here is a delicious, dense, chewy blondie with an incredibly moreish and buttery rich almond topping.
I love Blondies, probably even more than I love Brownies. I also adore almond frangipane, which is the creamy filling you will find tucked into French Almond Croissants. Putting the two things together, in my opinion, is pure and absolute genius!
I first saw a video of a recipe similar to this on Instagram. They looked fabulous, but I was not quite sure of the source. Something about it didn't ring true to me. I was hooked however and did a search to see if I could find another, more reliable looking recipe.
I discovered this almond frangipane blondie recipe on a page called Loaves & Such. It had quite a few positive reviews in the comments section and so I decided to go with it. In other words, I felt that it was a reliable recipe. Plus the photos looked amazing.
I was not disappointed. The bars turned out to be all that and more! Amazingly dense and chewy on the bottom. Lovely and almondy on the top. Altogether quite delicious! I chose not to sprinkle mine with icing sugar. I thought they were quite sweet enough.
I was very generous with the almonds on top however. Can you ever have too many? Not when they turn out lovely and golden brown and are topping a lush, rich almond filling!!
There are no flavors other than vanilla and almond in these lovely bars. The base has a rich and caramel flavor, just like a good blondie should, with just a hint of almond. The topping is full on almond flavors, just like you would expect in an almond croissant without the flakiness. Altogether these bars are one of the most favorite bars I have baked in a while. You are sure to fall in love with them, I guarantee!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE ALMOND FRANGIPANE BLONDIES
Simple every day baking ingredients. Prepare to fall in love. There are two very distinct layers.
For the Blondies:
- 3/4 cup (170g) butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 1/4 cups (250g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large free range egg, plus 1 large free range egg yolk
- 1 TBS pure vanilla
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- scant tsp of salt
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (25g) ground almonds (almond flour)
- large handful of sliced almonds to top (optional)
For the almond Frangipane layer:
- 4 TBS (57g) butter, softened
- 1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2/3 cup (66g) ground almonds (almond flour)\
- pinch of salt
HINTS AND TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST ALMOND FRANGIPANE BLONDIES
If you follow these hints and tips you can be ensured of success!
1. Make sure everything is at room temperature before you can begin. If I know I am going to be baking, I will take my eggs, butter, etc. out of the refrigerator about an hour prior to starting.
2. If your butter is cold, do soften it before using it to cream with the sugar. You can do this by popping it into the microwave and blitzing it on medium for 30 seconds, checking it every 10 seconds.
3. Allow your melted butter to cool until tepid before mixing with the sugar. You don't want to melt the sugar, as this can mess with the integrity of your bar and affect the chew.
4. Fold in the flour and almonds, don't beat them in. You just want them to be combined.
5. Measure everything carefully. If measuring by weight, use a good quality scale. (Mine is a Salter.) If you are using cups, spoon your flour into the cups and then level off with the straight edge of a knife. If you scoop you will end up with more flour than needed for the recipe and they will not be as chewy.
HOW TO MAKE ALMOND FRANGIPANE BLONDIES
Incredibly simple. You make the base. You make the topping. You layer them together and bake. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy! Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature before beginning and you can't go wrong!
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square baking dish and line it with baking paper, leaving an overhang to lift it out.
Make the frangipane topping first. Cream the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl until well combined. Whisk in the egg and both extracts to combine.
Whisk in the almonds and salt, mixing everything together well. Set aside.
In a medium sized bowl whisk the melted butter and brown sugar together thoroughly. Stir in the egg and egg yolk to combine well together. Whisk in both extracts, the baking powder and salt.
Stir in the flour and almond flour, combining all well together.
Spread the flour mixture into the prepared pan, spreading it out evenly. Top with the frangipane layer, again spreading it out evenly. (This worked best by dropping dollops of it evenly over top and then spreading it out with the back of a metal spoon.)
Sprinkle a handful of flaked almonds evenly over top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until the edges are nicely browned and starting to caramelize, and the topping is golden brown.
Leave to cool completely in the pan, then lift out and cut into squares to serve. Store in an airtight container for up to three days, or up to 7 days in the refrigerator.
These were lovely and rich and almondy. The base was dense and moreishly chewy. That frangipane topping was also incredibly moreish. The two together? Heavenly bliss!
I took some over to my sister's place to share with my father, and the two of them also really enjoyed these fabulous bars. If you are an almond fan, you really NEED these in your life!
Are you a fan of the Blondie? I think I like Blondies better than I like Brownies. Here are a couple more of my favorite Blondie Recipes!
PERFECT BLONDIES - Seeing the title you might think it is a bit bold of me to call this bar perfect, but once you bake them you will agree. These are the PERFECT Blondie bar. Dense and fudgy with a deep caramel flavor, that delicious combination of butter, brown sugar, butter and vanilla. These have the texture of your favorite brownie, combined with the taste of your favorite chocolate chip cookie. Amazingly tasty!
GINGERBREAD BLONDIES - The smell when these are baking is pure and utter bliss . . . decadently gorgeously divinely gingerbready. The consistency of them when baked . . . and still warm . . . wonderfully moist and incredibly fudgy, just like you want in a good blondie. Super moist, gently spiced and rich with butterscotch and caramel flavors. In other words, incredibly scrummy yummy. If you like gingerbread you will fall in love with these delicious bars.
Yield: 9 squares
Almond Frangipane Blondies
Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 1 H & 10 M
Rich, fudgy and almondy. If almond croissants and caramel-like blondies had a baby together, these would be it! Totally scrumptious! Adapted from Loaves and Such.
Ingredients
For the Blondies:
- 3/4 cup (170g) butter, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 1/4 cups (250g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1 large free range egg, plus 1 large free range egg yolk
- 1 TBS pure vanilla
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- scant tsp of salt
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup (25g) ground almonds (almond flour)
- large handful of sliced almonds to top (optional)
For the almond Frangipane layer:
- 4 TBS (57g) butter, softened
- 1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2/3 cup (66g) ground almonds (almond flour)\
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8 inch square baking dish and line it with baking paper, leaving an overhang to lift it out.
- Make the frangipane topping first. Cream the butter and sugar together in a medium bowl until well combined. Whisk in the egg and both extracts to combine.
- Whisk in the almonds and salt, mixing everything together well. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl whisk the melted butter and brown sugar together thoroughly. Stir in the egg and egg yolk to combine well together. Whisk in both extracts, the baking powder and salt.
- Stir in the flour and almond flour, combining all well together.
- Spread the flour mixture into the prepared pan, spreading it out evenly. Top with the frangipane layer, again spreading it out evenly. (This worked best by dropping dollops of it evenly over top and then spreading it out with the back of a metal spoon.)
- Sprinkle a handful of flaked almonds evenly over top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until the edges are nicely browned and starting to caramelize, and the topping is golden brown.
- Leave to cool completely in the pan, then lift out and cut into squares to serve. Store in an airtight container for up to three days, or up to 7 days in the refrigerator.
All rights reserved The English Kitchen
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
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